NORTH PALM BEACH LIFE
  • Home
    • Weather >
      • Hurricane Readiness
  • Cruise/Travel
    • Cruise Reviews and Stories
    • Victory I Great Lakes Cruise
  • Gigi in the 561
    • Gigi's Wine Shelf
    • Gigi in the 561 Interviews
    • Cora
    • My Father's Tales >
      • My Father's Tales - Photo Album
    • Travel Bistro
  • Blogs
    • Gerry Pronounced Gary
    • Rock and Roll Rewind
    • Susan Goldfein -- Blog >
      • Susan Goldfein
  • Video
  • Explore
    • October Odyssey >
      • Cartagena, Columbia
      • Panama Canal
      • Antigua, Guatemala
      • Cabo San Lucas
      • Birds and Bees Speakeasy in Los Angeles
      • We Love LA
      • Coast Starlight
      • Napa Wine Tour
      • California Zephyr
      • California Zephyr Part Two
      • Chicago
      • Amtrak Capitol Limited
      • Washington DC
    • Pam - Traveling in Style
    • Road Trip! >
      • Road Trip! -- Tucumcari, New Mexico
      • Road Trip! -- The Painted Desert
      • Road Trip! - Sedona, Arizona
      • Road Trip! - Sedona Wineries
      • Road Trip! Tonto Natural Bridge State Park
      • Road Trip! - Mogollon Rim
      • Road Trip! - Verde Canyon Railroad
      • Road Trip! - Jerome, Arizona
      • Road Trip! - California
      • Road Trip! - Palm Springs Celebrity Tour
      • Road Trip! - Palm Springs Aerial Tramway
      • Road Trip! - Festival in Palm Springs
      • Road Trip! - Willcox, Arizona and Apple Annie's Orchard
      • Road Trip! Willcox Wineries
      • Road Trip! Chiricahua National Monument
      • Road Trip! Tombstone, Arizona
      • Tombstone, Part Two
      • Road Trip! - Epilogue
    • Traveling With Joe >
      • Beartooth Highway
      • North Cascades National Park
      • A Visit to the Philippines
      • Grand Canyon National Park
      • Glacier National Park
      • Yellowstone National Park
      • Hiking in Bear Country
      • Crater Lake National Park
      • Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta
      • The Kerrville Folk Festival
      • Building Hope in the Rio Grande Valley
      • Yellowstone Camping Tales
    • Unknown Yellowstone >
      • Unknown Yellowstone - Heart Lake
      • Unknown Yellowstone - Summit Lake
      • Unknown Yellowstone - Shoshone Lake
      • Unknown Yellowstone - Grizzly Lake
      • Unknown Yellowstone - Riddle Lake
      • Unknown Yellowstone - Pelican Cone
      • Unknown Yellowstone - Mt. Washburn
      • Unknown Yellowstone - Specimen Ridge
      • Unknown Yellowstone - Avalanche Peak
      • Unknown Yellowstone - Divide Creek
  • Contact
    • Media Kit
    • Pamela Barker - Author
    • The Story of StarText
  • Search

grand puget sound cruise
​day 5

Anacortes, Washington

PictureDowntown Anacortes
By GERRY BARKER
North Palm Beach Life
Published May. 2023

Photos/Video by Gerry Barker


Day Five of our Grand Puget Sound cruise on American Cruise Lines finds our ship, American Constellation, docked in Anacortes, Washington, a city of some 20,000 people on the north shore of Fidalgo Island. We arrived yesterday around 6:30 pm, and will stay here another night before continuing our voyage around the San Juan Islands.

Hard to believe, but we have reached the half-way point in our 10-night journey. We've found time runs at a different pace when you're on a cruise.

Just to prove travel writing isn't all glitz and glam, we are starting our day with a trip to the ship's Guest Laundry, where we'll freshen up and wash some clothes. Not only is the laundry free to use, but also I learn from Rick, the hotel general manager, housekeeping will also do laundry on request -- no charge.

In fact, it's hard for guests to spend anything extra on this cruise. The meals, the drinks -- alcoholic and otherwise, gratuities, pretty much everything except premium excursions, are all included in your fare. Rick also said if a guest prefers a certain brand of wine or spirits, and lets them know in advance, it will be waiting for them when they arrive.

You could say I put that to the test when I couldn't get the soft drink I prefer, Coke Zero. Within 24 hours, a crew member was knocking on my stateroom door with two cans of Coke Zero, with more stocked in the lounge. Color me impressed.

The ship is offering a number of interesting excursions here, including a "Walking Experience" of this seaside port town, a "Hiking Adventure," along a coastal trail that skirts the Salish Sea, a "Jet Boat Adventure" in an open-air boat or making a local loop in a bus. We opt to layer up and strike out on our own to discover Anacortes, a town my late brother used to call home.

Picture
​It's a gloriously sunny day with temps in the 50s -- the weather gods are indeed smiling -- and it's a short walk past the pier to the town's main street, with its charming mix of historic buildings and shops. Our first stop is the combination Hardware Store/Alley Cats Antiques, and when I say they have everything you can imagine, believe it.

There's all manner of marine items, garden art, glassware, furniture, books, postcards and vintage jewelry, and much more (there was even a large, yellow cat curled up sleeping by the cash register -- not for sale, by the way). Pam zeroed in on the jewelry, and found several pieces that will be accompanying us back to Palm Beach.

Just down the street is a coffee shop/bookstore, where we learned about the people and murals painted on many of the shop walls. They depict persons who have historical ties to the city. 

Speaking of history, our next stop was the Anacortes Museum, just a few blocks off the main drag. Housed in a 1910 building that was at one time the city library, admission is free. There's a major exhibit on "Photographing Anacortes," which spotlights the photographers who captured the city through the decades. Adam, the docent on duty, told us many thousand of the photos have been digitized and are available online.

As it was getting to be lunchtime, we decided to head back to ther ship, where returning passengers were being served the ship's own version of a Brandy Alexander, with lots of chocolate bits. Yum -- we'll take two, thank you.

For lunch, we grabbed a hot dog and fries in the Sky Lounge and found a table on the outdoor deck -- the perfect place to enjoy this sunny, early spring day in the Northwest.

Later this afternoon, there's a program on "Whales of the Pacific Northwest" in the Cascade Lounge, which is timely, since our next port of call is Friday Harbor, Washington, the San Juan Island where we are signed up for the "Whale Watching Cruise." We can't wait. Stay tuned.

NEXT:  Friday Harbor

Day 5 Slide Show

Picture
Contact us: [email protected]

© COPYRIGHT  2025 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
Picture
  • Home
    • Weather >
      • Hurricane Readiness
  • Cruise/Travel
    • Cruise Reviews and Stories
    • Victory I Great Lakes Cruise
  • Gigi in the 561
    • Gigi's Wine Shelf
    • Gigi in the 561 Interviews
    • Cora
    • My Father's Tales >
      • My Father's Tales - Photo Album
    • Travel Bistro
  • Blogs
    • Gerry Pronounced Gary
    • Rock and Roll Rewind
    • Susan Goldfein -- Blog >
      • Susan Goldfein
  • Video
  • Explore
    • October Odyssey >
      • Cartagena, Columbia
      • Panama Canal
      • Antigua, Guatemala
      • Cabo San Lucas
      • Birds and Bees Speakeasy in Los Angeles
      • We Love LA
      • Coast Starlight
      • Napa Wine Tour
      • California Zephyr
      • California Zephyr Part Two
      • Chicago
      • Amtrak Capitol Limited
      • Washington DC
    • Pam - Traveling in Style
    • Road Trip! >
      • Road Trip! -- Tucumcari, New Mexico
      • Road Trip! -- The Painted Desert
      • Road Trip! - Sedona, Arizona
      • Road Trip! - Sedona Wineries
      • Road Trip! Tonto Natural Bridge State Park
      • Road Trip! - Mogollon Rim
      • Road Trip! - Verde Canyon Railroad
      • Road Trip! - Jerome, Arizona
      • Road Trip! - California
      • Road Trip! - Palm Springs Celebrity Tour
      • Road Trip! - Palm Springs Aerial Tramway
      • Road Trip! - Festival in Palm Springs
      • Road Trip! - Willcox, Arizona and Apple Annie's Orchard
      • Road Trip! Willcox Wineries
      • Road Trip! Chiricahua National Monument
      • Road Trip! Tombstone, Arizona
      • Tombstone, Part Two
      • Road Trip! - Epilogue
    • Traveling With Joe >
      • Beartooth Highway
      • North Cascades National Park
      • A Visit to the Philippines
      • Grand Canyon National Park
      • Glacier National Park
      • Yellowstone National Park
      • Hiking in Bear Country
      • Crater Lake National Park
      • Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta
      • The Kerrville Folk Festival
      • Building Hope in the Rio Grande Valley
      • Yellowstone Camping Tales
    • Unknown Yellowstone >
      • Unknown Yellowstone - Heart Lake
      • Unknown Yellowstone - Summit Lake
      • Unknown Yellowstone - Shoshone Lake
      • Unknown Yellowstone - Grizzly Lake
      • Unknown Yellowstone - Riddle Lake
      • Unknown Yellowstone - Pelican Cone
      • Unknown Yellowstone - Mt. Washburn
      • Unknown Yellowstone - Specimen Ridge
      • Unknown Yellowstone - Avalanche Peak
      • Unknown Yellowstone - Divide Creek
  • Contact
    • Media Kit
    • Pamela Barker - Author
    • The Story of StarText
  • Search